Ex-deputy sentenced to 72 months in jail

A 39-year-old former Smith County deputy has been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, U.S. Attorney John M. Bales said Wednesday.

Kimbrick Bernard Jones pleaded guilty on Oct. 8, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribution of more than 50 grams of methamphetamine and less than 28 grams of crack cocaine. He was sentenced to 72 months in federal prison Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Leonard E. Davis.

According to information presented in court, from 2012 until July 10, 2013, Jones, who had been employed by the Smith County Sheriff’s Office for about 10 years, admitted to having distributed over 50 grams of methamphetamine and less than 28 grams of crack cocaine while on duty. Jones was indicted by a federal grand jury last July.

The case was investigated by the FBI, the Texas Rangers and Smith County Sheriff’s Office; it was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Moore and Jim Middleton.